


Fallen Angel

by curiouser_curiouser



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-01
Updated: 2016-04-01
Packaged: 2018-01-24 22:37:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1619462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/curiouser_curiouser/pseuds/curiouser_curiouser
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nico di Angelo was kidnapped three years ago.<br/>Tortured, raped, and now he's practically at his breaking point. </p><p>One day, the house he's been trapped in for so long is being robbed, by none other than a certain Repair Boy.<br/>Leo saves him from the torture chamber, but how do things go from there?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fallen Angel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> how nico ended up where is is, and how he gets saved.

The only sounds that were heard were the ragged and shaky breath of Nico di Angelo and the skin tearing cuffs gripped tightly around his unhealthily bone-skinny wrists. He could hear the faint beating of his heart and could feel the slow pumps of his veins touching the inside of the cuffs.

You can't fall asleep, his thoughts whispered softly to him, over and over. His eyelids became heavy. No. Don't sleep. He blinked them back open, wetting his lips to keep them from getting more chapped than they already are.

The sharp springs coming from the couch he was tied to cut his bare legs with every single movement and the walls seemed to be closing in on him every time he cracked his eyelids open. The only light in the atrocious smelling locked room he was trapped in came from the parts of the windows that weren't covered in duct tape and large cardboard squares.

It'd been three years, three long and miserable years of the endless, harrowing torture of rape, crucial words venomously whispered into his ears and the harsh beatings followed by screams no one could seem to hear from outside the thick walls of the room he was effortlessly thrown onto the cold and nail covering wood floors of.

The boy had ran away from his disapproving father two years after his sister had passed on and his mother had abandoned them. After maybe a week, he was taken out by the hard pressing of chloroform on his nose by a small napkin from behind a Chevron gas station on Wallace.

He remembered waking up in the tight trunk of a car, not being able to close his eyes after.  
Nico had tried to find a way out, kicking and screaming at every part of the space.

Once he realized that there was no way to escape, he slowly lowered his voice and didn't try to escape anymore. He decided that he'd try to escape when they got to their destination, god knows how many hours later.

Within the three years of pure torture, every time Nico had tried to escape, he'd fail and the punishment would get worse and worse.The consequences of freeing himself became to be too much, and eventually, he just gave up and never even occasionally tried again.

Everyday when his capturer, Kronos, would go to work, pretending to be someone he's not, he'd beat Nico until it reached the point where Nico winced when he winced. When his capturer would come back from his job, he'd do unimaginable things to Nico, worse than just a beating or whispering life-absorbing words countless times into his ears. Nico figured that this guy 'ought to be the human version of a Dementor, but probably worse.

When he was satisfied with the atrocious pain Nico was in, he'd laugh for more minutes than Nico could count before going back to his stained sheets (he could hardly tell the color that they used to be anymore) and falling into them while Nico tried to never let his guard down, only lightly sleeping for an hour every few days when Kronos was working. Even then, he'd jerk away at the slightest of sounds, even if it was his chains moving. With torture, he decided that he could never be too careful. He was right.

His heart was heavy in his chest and his throat ached as he gulped when he heard the sound of a jiggling key in the door. He took a deep breath and prepared for the absolute worst, because how much more bad can this get?

The footsteps coming from the small foyer were nothing Nico recognized because they were usually fast and alarming, but now they were slower, quieter. It was almost like they were hardly there.

A figure peeked from the corner Nico could see, and he knew right then that it wasn't Kronos.  
The figure was a bit shorter and from what Nico could see, had curly hair that stuck up from the top.

He stepped more towards the light and Nico could see that he was holding a pillow case, or a bag of some sort. The boy stuffed whatever he could in the bag and Nico sat quietly, debating on whether or not to say something, maybe even make a whimper to show him that Nico was here and that he needed help.

Then, Nico realized that this guy was stealing. He couldn't be good news, he might end up being worse than who he was stuck with now, even if that seemed impossible. There was a time he once believed no one could be worse than his father, and look how wrong that'd turned out. Before his brain could turn to mush, Nico finally decided against saying anything. This guy seemed to be able to navigate things easily, he was quiet and swift. If Nico ended up stuck with him, he'd have even less of a chance of escaping than now. Nico did his best not to make a single movement. Unfortunately, he'd never really been too good at that.

Nico had already asked God, if he even existed, many times about why he was still alive. He had the worst luck humanly possible; anything bad that could happen did happen. The thief noticing him as he picked up the hammer that was used against him many times in the past is one of many examples. "Holy crap." He dropped his bag to the ground and ran up to Nico, his face frantic with worry. He put his hands on Nico's shoulders and shook him. Nico tried not to flinch. "Are you okay? Where're the keys to get you out of these things?"

Nico shook his head in an 'I don't know' kind of way, taking shallow breaths as the boy continued to tug at the cuffs. The boy's eyes finally widened and he started to dig through the tool belt wrapped around his skinny waist.

He pulled out a bobby-pin and pressed it into the lock of the cuffs.

Nico had always struggled with feeling real. After three years, Nico finds it hard to believe that a thief of all people could possibly save him. He thought for a second that maybe he was dreaming, but an accidental slip of Leo's hand inflicted too much pain on him to not be real.

It was only a matter of minutes before before both cuffs were released from his wrists and Nico inadvertently fell into the boy's arms. Somehow, he felt safe. His eyelids tempted him to sleep, but hell if he was going to go through the same thing again. He made a move to escape from the thief's grip, pushing his scarred arms forward as if to knock them both over. Stupid plan, really, thinking he could just crawl away. Nico was too weak to fall over anyway.

"Whoa, dude, I'm not going to hurt you or anything," Thief said. He gently pushed Nico back a bit, trying to examine his face. "See? Look, I'm going to get you out of here." He helped Nico stand, pushing onto the ground to move his feet forward. Nico grabbed his hands. Admittedly, he probably would have fell because of his weak arms if not for the thief's strength. His legs shook beneath him. He began to question when the last time he walked was, and he could tell the thief was thinking the same thing. Nico felt self-conscious under his gaze. Did this guy always stare at people like that? Although, Nico figures he might stare too if he found some bleeding teenage boy in the middle of the house he'd been robbing. "Do you want me to call the police? Or an ambulance? Wait, do you live here? Is this some kinky kind of shit and I just interrupted something very personal?"

Nico would have laughed if not for his rough voice and the feeling of nausea he got from the words "live" and "kinky."

"Alright, I'm calling the police," Thief declared, already beginning to pull his phone from his pocket. Nico shook from the thief's grip, eager enough to accidentally use his voice. He'd never heard the word "No" be so butchered. It sounded as though someone had ran over his throat with a lawn mower. Although, that doesn't seem all that different to what Kronos had done. Nico shivered at the thought of him, before remembering that it was getting dark out. He'd be back any minute now.

With all the strength he could muster, he dragged Leo out of the house through the backdoor, where they'd have less of a chance of being caught than going through the front. When they stepped outside, Nico realized he probably looked like a kid in a candy store. He didn't even want to know how long it'd been since he saw the sky or felt grass under his feet, air that didn't smell of blood and come. 

"Look, kid, I'm calling the police whether you like it or not," Thief insisted. Nico had trouble meeting his eyes. "If I just took you back to my house or dropped you off in the middle of no where or something- well, I'm sure that's got to just be illegal somewhere. You need help, right? I mean, look at you!"

Nico felt like hiding. He hadn't even taken the time to think about how horrible he looked. 

Thief must've realized he said the wrong thing. He quickly corrected himself with, "I mean, you're bleeding and everything. That needs to be fixed somehow, right? How long have you been in there anyways?" He seemed to be studying the old and new scars on Nico's body. Only then did he realize that on top of looking likes shit apparently, he was also half naked in grossly stained shorts and a rib cage that stuck out too much for his own taste. Great. 

Nico hesitated on answering. Instead, he settled with a quick shrug, not wanting to use his voice anymore than he had to. 

"Okay, well," Thief started. "I'm gonna drive you to the hospital. I guess the cops will step in from there?" The question looked like it was more for the thief than himself.

Nico didn't have time to ponder, however, when he heard the sound of a car door slamming out front. He realized he must have immediately looked alarmed, because that was when the thief chose to say, "Oh, shit! Is that the dude who lives here?" Nico nodded faster than he had ever in the course of three years, suddenly feeling more unsafe than he did when he was still in the chains. This was the closest he'd ever gotten to an escape, and he didn't have much faith he'd make it out alive. "Alright, let's make a run for it." He paused. "Shit, dude. Can you even run right now? You know what? Here." He arranged himself into a squatting position. "Get on my back."

Normally, Nico would have refused. He hadn't been weak before, he hadn't felt this pathetic before. If three years ago Nico had seen the scene before his eyes, he probably would have laughed. But when he saw the silhouette of Kronos getting closer to the back door through the window, he knew he didn't have a choice; there was no way he'd be able to run by himself. He jumped on to the thief's back, half of his guard let down because for some reason the touch of thief's spine on his stomach calmed him down. The other half? Racing on what ever adrenaline he had left in order to get out.

By the time they reached the car, Kronos was already too close. Thief didn't have time to place Nico on the other side of the car, instead shoving him into the passenger seat from the drivers side as gently as he could in such a rush and stepping on the gas as soon as the key was in the ignition. 

Kronos had missed them by half a second. Nico tried to hold back the tears he knew were coming, but it was too late by the time he realized they were even there. He was out. He was _out_. He'd tried not to let himself get excited by the time he was seated in the car. He had tried not to smile when the drivers door shut right in Kronos' face, tried to still be nervous once they hit a two-mile point from the shack. Once again, he failed. The only thing that was going through his mind was about how _he was fucking **out**_. His smile faded in and out on the drive to the hospital. Only after the fourth time it was said, did Nico hear what thief was asking.

"Are you okay?" 

For the first time since getting in the car, Nico stopped. For a second, he examined his bruises and scars. A second later, he realized that the thief wasn't talking about the outside of his body. That was a question Nico didn't have the answer to. He shrugged. 

Thief's lips twitched to the side. "Alright then, what about your name?"

Nico paused before deciding that if the guy was trustworthy enough to help him escape and even take him to the hospital, he at least deserved a name. He cleared his throat as roughly as he could without hurting himself and answered with, "Nico di Angelo."

For the first time since the whole ordeal, thief smiled. "Nice to meet you!" He made a short attempt to shake hands before realizing that he was supposed to be driving. "I'm Valdez. Leo Valdez." 

Nico tried to come up with a reply. By the time he had something, a minute passed. They were about thirty seconds away from the hospital and it was way too late to say anything now. He wished he weren't so awkward, that even though he was locked up for three years, at least he could've talked with someone, other than to himself. 

Leo pulled up to the ER building, paid for parking and found a space up front. Nico couldn't help feeling bad that someone spent money on him. At least it gave him a conversation when he decided to ask who the hell was going to pay for the medical bill. "I don't - cough - I don't have insurance or anything." 

Leo smirked. "Don't worry, I'm buying." Nico almost opened his mouth to remind the kid that this wasn't an ice cream shop, that it was a _hospital_ , and he was pretty sure that wasn't how it worked. By that time, the drivers side door had already been shut from the outside. 

Nico followed shortly after, eyes lingering on the spot where Leo used to be. He suddenly felt as though the energy from his body had been drained. There didn't seem to be a will to move even his head. 

"Do you need me to carry you again?" Leo asked. Nico shook his head. He'd realized that if he fell, he'd look like a total jackass. So instead, he let Leo hold him upright from underneath his armpit and a hand over his shoulder. Leo looked proud, like the way his arms were tied together like a shoelace was some type of beautiful masterpiece.

When the reached the entrance, the nurses didn't have time to sit around and wait for new patients. Nico finally realized the critical condition he was in. An all-too prominent ribcage, bruises running up and down his thighs and stomach, bite marts and long, deep scars covering his pale arms. He now realized why even Leo had gasped at his sight. Well, other than the surprise of there being a half-dead child in the house you're robbing. 

Nico felt unsafe as soon as him and Leo were separated, even though he'd barely known the boy for twenty minutes. The nurses bombarded him with questions about where everything had came from, every word too fast to process as the voices overlapped each other. As soon as the door opened once again, a doctor stepped through. Nico was slightly grateful that the nurses were done and he didn't have to deal with any more of their questions. The first thing he heard from the doctor was the most casual, sad question Nico had ever heard. "You're Di Angelo." He commented. It wasn't a question, nor a fact. It just hung there. Nico nodded. 

The doctor's facial expression remained calm. "That's great! They've been looking for you for quite a while now." 

"Who?" Nico choked.

The doctor, Dr. Brunner, as it read on his name tag, frowned. "The police. There's been entire clubs and committees dedicated to finding you. Even before you supposedly went missing." Nico stayed silent. Brunner kept talking. "How are you feeling?"

Nico shrugged. It was the same as asking if he was okay. 

"Is the boy who brought you here the one you've been with these past years?"

Nico shook his head. He didn't understand how anyone could believe that, especially considering how childish the guy looked. It was a plus that he brought Nico to the hospital when he could have just left him to rot. 

"How about the one you were with these past years? Do you feel comfortable enough to tell me what needs to be fixed?"

Nico sighed. There was too much that needed to be fixed. He gave a short nod, standing up and spinning around. It should have been obvious. 

Brunner frowned. "Right. Well, we just need you to sign a consent agreement for some vaccination shots and for further questioning and therapy. Is that okay?"

 

Nico hesitated. He didn't know if he could do therapy. He recalled once trying it after Bianca had died, twice a week for an hour total. It had never been enough, and it'd always lasted too long. It wasn't good enough. 

Brunner seemed to sense the reluctance. "I've read your file, Nico. I'm sorry about your sister. You didn't deserve what happened to her." Nico cast his gaze to the white tiles of his room, glaring at the floor. "This stuff will help you. Especially the therapy. It'll help us too, even the police. To catch the guy who did this to you, and to stop him from doing any more. To anyone."

Nico cleared his throat, meeting Brunner's eyes. "Why can't my dad sign it?" Usually, Hades would be the first person any legal figure would go to. No one asked Nico what he could do; they didn't care. He didn't understand why they did now. 

Brunner's face darkened. "I'm very sorry. He passed a year after you went missing." 

-

The next interview was similar, except this time, Nico was more disoriented than before. Not with his father's death. And that's the problem. He'd expected to feel sad, instead of just _normal_. He wondered if that made him a bad person. Who doesn't even mourn their own father's death?

Nico had always known why he hated Hades so much. It was the same as when his father didn't cry about Bianca, or mother. The problem is, Hades was- had been- selfish. Nico thinks that around the same time he started distancing himself from Hades, he realized that his father reflected him. No matter where he went, the remarks would be the same. He'd be just as angry. The only difference is, Hades was a coward, and Nico was just weak. Crying was easy for him, but running away wasn't. This time, Nico missed himself more than he missed his father. 

The cop that interviewed him was too sweet. The whole thing consisted of gentle questions about where he'd been, what he'd been through. He'd answered briefly. The entire time, his thoughts would bud in. _I'm selfish. Where's Leo? I hate myself. I'm selfish. Bianca. I'm selfish._

He was never really too great at listening. It took him a few moments to realize the interview was over before he finally got up and followed her back to the waiting room. Nico tried not to be relieved when he saw Leo sitting in one of the many chairs, probably waiting for him. 

The thief looked up as soon as Nico came into sight, stood up and walked right over to where he stood with the cop. Leo ignored her. "Are you okay?" 

The cop answered for him anyways. "Probably not," she guessed, sounding very much less sweet than when she did in the interview. She looked over to Nico. "Now, honey, about your father. Until we can get the will and everything together, do you have any family you could stay with?"

Nico shook his head. There was this one aunt, but she was mentally insane. Hell if he was staying with her. The last time he went, if he ate anything but cereal, she'd threaten to kill him. 

Leo jumped in. "He can stay with me? Or us, I should say. I have licensed foster parents. I mean, if he wants to." He turned to Nico. "Do you want to?"

Nico shrugged. It sounded better than his aunt. Leo had saved him. 

"Did they already do a background check for you?" The cop asked Leo. He nodded. "I'm going to go look at that. You guys sit tight for a moment, alright?" She walked away, rubbing her temple with one hand and the other on her belt.

Leo made his way back over to where he previously sat, and Nico followed, sitting next to him.

"Are you okay?" Leo repeated. "You know, now that no one else can answer for you." 

Nico was getting tired of that question. He hesitated before deciding on just telling the truth to get it over with, shaking his head no. Leo pursed his lips.

"Thank you." Nico said, finally. He assumed the boy knew what he meant. 

"Don't mention it." Leo responded.

Under the bright lights of the room, he was finally able to see what Leo really looked like compared to his silhouette inside the shack and in the darkness of the backyard. His hair looked like it'd be painful to brush out; messy and curly. His clear skin was darker compared to Nico's, and his eyes seemed almost red in the light. Leo seemed almost impish. He was tall, though, if that counted. Nico wondered how he could be so tall and strong and still have the second skinniest body in the world (compared to his, of course). He looked quite uncomfortable under Nico's gaze, which made Nico believe that they weren't all that different.

The sat in silence for a while, the only noise to fill it being the sound of The Lion King playing on the television above their heads.

"You're not scared of me, right?" Leo asked. Nico jumped, having been lost in his own thoughts. He looked at the thief, confused. "You know, because of why I was there?"

It took a moment for it to click. "No." Nico answered simply. He assumed Leo was talking about the stealing. "I've done worse." 

For a brief second, Leo's face showed confusion and probably nervousness. A mask covered it quickly. He flashed Nico a bright smile. "Good. I'm not a bad guy, ya know? All of my sisters and brothers think I'm the coolest, strongest one of the group. I'm also the most good looking, so prepare for some drooling from the ladies." 

Nico almost snorted. Leo wasn't bad looking, but terribly good looking either. Maybe it was because of his sunken in cheeks or impishness, but he somehow doubted Leo's brothers and sisters would think he was _hot_. He then remembered the reason they were waiting over here. He said he had a foster Mom and Dad. Nico frowned. "Are your foster parents nice?"

Leo hesitated. "They're not really my foster parents anymore. Adopted, been for two years. Cool, right?" He paused. "But yeah, they're cool. Pretty nice."

Nico sighed, nodding. He'd been close to letting himself feel for Leo, for having foster parents. He wouldn't pry about the guy's childhood or anything, but for a second he didn't feel so alone. Nico didn't feel like he had a family after Mom and Bianca died. He looked down, eyes tracing the patterns of the carpet underneath his feet. "What about your, um... Sisters and brothers?"

"Some of them are cool, I guess." He paused to think for a moment. "There's Piper, who's my best friend. Then there's Annabeth. She's the smart one. And Hazel, who just got adopted like, a week ago. Then there's Jason, my other best friend. Luke, the twins. They're brothers. All troublemakers, like myself." He winked. "Reyna, who's nice enough I guess. When she wants to be. Then there's Percy. He's an idiot, which is strange because Annabeth's his best friend, but he's super funny. Like me."

Nico nodded, taking it all in and ignoring Leo's last comment. Those were a lot of people. The nervous feeling of the situation came pouring back into his mind. Thankfully, Leo seemed to sense his struggle. "Don't worry, our house is _huge_. Plus, Luke and the twins are moving out in a couple of months. It was a temporary home for them, but everyone else stayed. They don't like us very much anyways." 

Nico sighed, but he didn't get to question it. The cop, along with Dr. Brunner, walked over to where they were sitting. 

"All right. We've contacted your parents, Mr. Valdez." The cop announced. "We remember them from a case not too long ago. They've certainly been helpful with things like this." She turned to Nico. "We just need you to sign some quick paperwork. Agreements and some rules you have to look over."

Nico held back a groan. He'd had enough with paperwork today. He wondered if they even understood where he'd been for the last three years, or if they were even smart enough to know about the proper care he needed. _Shut up, that's selfish_ , he told himself. 

The doctor smiled at Nico. "We're going to give you a couple prescriptions to drop off at the local pharmacy. Pain pills and some sleeping medicine. Nothing further until you've done a couple of sessions with the therapist..."

The cop nodded in agreement. "You're going to be escorted by someone from our department to gather some things from your previous home tomorrow afternoon." 

Nico bit his lip, then winced. He almost forgot about the bruises there. "I um... My stuff isn't there anymore..."

The cop raised her brows. "And why not?"

Nico shrugged. "I ran away. Before the, um. Thing. All my stuff is with, you know, him." He tried not to flinch when Leo put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. It felt comforting, for some reason. Nico leaned into the touch. "Don't want to wear it anymore, I guess." 

She gave her best smile. "That's alright. One of the requirements for foster parents is that they are to be able to provide for the kids. I'll see to it that they take you shopping. Or Mr. Valdez here could take you." She paused. "Oh, and I'm sure you won't have to worry about the Kronos guy for a while." Nico winced. "They're headed to the address you gave us right now. Just sign this paperwork, leave it at the main desk and then you're free to go."

With that, her and Brunner walked away.

Him and Nico signed the paperwork together, slower than Nico liked, before leaving it at the desk. Leo turned to him, and Nico half expected to be made fun of. He probably looked weak and gross and disgusting, but he'd look worse if there weren't bandages all over him. Leo stayed silent, instead grabbing his hand and leading him to the exit from the same side they entered from and helping him into the car.

With small conversation here and there, the drive didn't last long. Soon enough, Nico was even closer to meeting his first foster parents. As much as Leo reassured him that it'd be okay, you'd think Nico would be less nauseous.

Instead, all he could think about was how he needed to puke.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, my Oreo's!  
> Yes, I'm calling you that now. 
> 
> Anyways, I've been wanting to do something like this  
> for a while now. 
> 
> I hope you liked the first chapter, comments and kudos are strongly appreciated. :)


End file.
